Parenting is the hardest thing you'll ever do, but here are a few things that can make it a tad easier.

MEDITATION

There are several kinds of meditations. Search online and choose the one you like. I prefer guided `Mindfulness Meditation'. An instructor, usually a woman, with a voice as warm and smooth as honey, leads you through a series of `exercises' until you feel a kind of fluffy feeling that's midway between being high and dozing off. Everyone thinks you are doing something super serious.It's a guilty pleasure, kind of like bunking class.

PODCASTS

Unlike meditation, podcasts can be recommend to everyone -if you have an excruciating commute, you are bored while you feed the baby, feel brain dead while you cook and clean, if the minutes on the treadmill just don't roll by fast enough, if you hate what's on TV , need financial
advice, parenting advice, if you are looking for inspiration, want to hear stories, solve mysteries or do guided meditations, podcasts are the answer. According to the internet, there are 1,15,000 English-language podcasts available online. You are bound to find one that interests you. It's ideal for those who multitask and if parenting isn't multitasking, we don't know what is.

STOP CARING A HOOT

If there's one decision you want to take to turn your life around, let it be this -don't care a hoot about what anyone says or thinks about you. In polite words, let the value that you place on criticism by others be equal to or less than the physical space occupied by the rear side of a small rodent.Not worrying about what other parents think about your parenting style, what the books say you should do, what in-laws, neighbours, even teachers say , will set you free. Then, it will be just you and the kid and that abundant resource called common sense.You'll make mistakes, learn from
them and grow -and by you, we mean you and the kid. It definitely beats trying to create impossible walls to climb only to find out that the wall you built stands between you and the kid.

UNFRIEND YOURSELF FROM SOCIAL MEDIA

The whole `My life as lived on social media' thing, will really get to you. Between all your social media accounts, you see a constant parade of perfect families. They go on gorgeous vacations 12 times a year. But you might take one annual vacation that inevitably starts with an argument andor tantrum so you do a family sulk all the way to the airport. The couples in those photo-sharing sites go out looking like film stars on date nights sans kids. You tried it a few times, but realised it was so much work! It's much better to just watch TV at home after the kid goes to bed.Their kids talk about astronauts and build robots at the age of three. Your kid still talks about poop and Barbie -often in the same sentence. Theirs is a socially
responsible, eco-friendly , politically-aware family . You spent all day yesterday teaching your daughter to whistle, which, we admit, is of absolutely no practical value to the world. You might still not be evolved enough to break all ties from social media, but you should learn to scroll quickly past the chronic gloaters, and feel empowered when you `hide' them from the timeline. Try it. You'll love the peace that follows.

CALL IN SICK

In school, college and at work, at some point or another, we've all faked a cough on the phone and called in sick. Why not do that as a parent? If popularised, this could be a thing. One could announce to the world that one is sick and then just retire. Lie in bed all day , listen to music, read a book and at regular intervals, let out a groan. A day or two of this and you'll come out feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.Spa days and retreats are for losers, this stuff is virtually effortless and free!